Logo Design Samples
and Principles
Here are some best practices and logo design principles and samples to guide you in crafting your logo.
When you see the How-to-Branding.com Toolbox, it designates that the following content is a tool, exercise, or technique you can use to help develop your affordable brand strategy.
A good logo should do one of the following:
1. Good representation of the business name (Target’s bullseye logo) 2. Good representation of the brand’s primary offering (knife and fork for catering service) 3. Good representation of the brand’s promise (graduation cap for tutoring service) 4. Abstract symbol that represents an intangible service (Prudential rock)
Ask Yourself...
• What image do I want to project and (if you already have a logo) how does my current logo fall short? • What about the business has changed since the logo was created? • Can I update my logo to reflect my updated identity? • Or do I need a completely new look? • How should my logo differentiate itself from the symbol of my competitors? • What elements of my logo, if any, are important to my identity? • Are any elements of my previous logo relevant?
Your logo is the doorway to your brand.
Your logo should convey a sense of emotion and personality. Think of it as the layers of an onion. As you peel away each layer—the typography, the symbols, the shapes and textures, and colors—you learn more and more about the business behind the logo.
Your logo should express the appropriate tone and voice articulated in your brand strategy. When you think about this critical alignment, consider the necktie. If a businessman walks into a boardroom with a loud and garish pink flamingo print tie, that tie would speak clearly to everyone in the room even before the businessman uttered a single word. Conversely, a conservative silk tie will “speak” in an entirely different voice. Your company’s logo can act as the reputation that precedes you into the marketplace.
Your logo should look different than other logos—especially those who share your same marketspace or prospect base. Having a “me too” logo design will weaken your company’s uniqueness and the differentiation you tried so hard to establish in developing your
brand essence.
For more about modern logo design principles and examples,
click here.
Click here for information about protecting your logo with a trademark or registration.
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